Solar, Wind, and Alternative Energy Sources

Our houses leak, our light bulbs produce more heat than illumination, our big screen TV sets draw power when they are turned off, and that’s just the start of it.

U.S. businesses and individuals could save money, curb emissions of global warming pollutants, reduce our dependence on foreign oil and cut energy consumption by 23 percent by 2020, merely by taking sensible, practical steps to use energy more efficiently, says a report from McKinsey & Company released today.

What’s more, energy efficiency is the very best way to create so-called green jobs — yes, even better than subsidizing solar or wind power — because it makes the economy more productive in the long run.

1. Unplug Any Unused Gadgets or Appliances.

Turning off any sort of device does not completely stop it from using power. As long as it’s plugged into a power source it will still siphon energy and raise your electric bills through the roof.
To solve this, you can simply unplug and unused devices, or more conveniently, get a power strip to manage more of your devices simultaneously.

2. Make The Switch To Fluorescent.

On average, regular light bulbs use 12 times more energy than standard fluorescent lights. Fluorescent lights, on top of using 12 times less energy, also last 5 times longer than standard light bulbs. They cost a little extra, but that extra is worth it in the long run. If every American household replaced only ONE of its standard light bulbs with an energy efficient fluorescent light bulb, Americans would save the equivalent amount of energy that a nuclear power plant produces in a year!

You Don't Need To Drive Everywhere

3. Don’t Drive Everywhere.

Many places that people go to every day, don’t require a car to get to. Try walking, riding a bike, taking a bus, or even carpool. Almost every gallon of gas you use, produces 22 pound of CO2 emissions. Vehicles consume half of the worlds produced oil, and are responsible for a quarter of all green-house gas emissions. If driving is a constant necessity, then try to drive more responsibly; make sure your tires are properly inflated, don’t idle and waste gas, plan your trips more effectively, don’t drive aggressively, and follow the recommended maintenance plan for your vehicle.

Eat Responsibly

4. Eat Responsibly.

18 percent of human-caused emissions can be attributed to the livestock industry. You do not in any way need to be a vegetarian to make a huge difference, simply skip meat one day a week to make a difference. In fact, if every American skipped meat one day a week, it would have the same impact as if 8 million cars disappeared off the road.Yeah, little things add up.